Bruce Power's Electric Car. The company has installed charging stations at its Visitors' Centre and in communities through Bruce, Grey and Huron counties.

Partnering with Plug’n Drive, the University of Waterloo, local communities and the Asthma Society of Canada, Bruce Power announced a series of collaborative initiatives to promote clean, electrified transportation in Ontario. These initiatives build on the foundation of Ontario’s low-emissions electricity system, which support achieving long-term climate change targets in the province.

“While we continue to focus on playing an important role providing Ontario with emissions-free power, we also believe we need to do our part to support innovation and build on a modern, clean electricity system to help reduce emissions,” said Duncan Hawthorne, Bruce Power’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We believe supporting these initiatives, in collaboration with a number of key partners, will produce positive and tangible results.”

The phase out of coal-fired electricity in Ontario has significantly reduced emissions from the electricity sector, making it the single largest climate change initiative in North America, and Bruce Power’s increased output provided 70 per cent of the replacement energy needed to support this. While the progress to date is significant, there is an opportunity to do even more by linking the province’s clean energy sector to help reduce emissions from transportation, which is the largest greenhouse gas contributor in Ontario.

“Ontario is committed to being a leader in the fight against climate change and one of the areas essential to achieving this is by supporting clean, electrified transportation in Ontario from an emissions-free electricity system,” said Hon. Glen Murray, Ontario’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change. “These initiatives by Bruce Power, Plug’n Drive and others are the kind of partnerships that are essential to make this vision a reality.”

Cara Clairman, President and CEO of Plug’n Drive, said her organization is hosting the first ever Electric Vehicle Day at Queen’s Park today, Oct. 26.

“Plug’n Drive is proud to be the champion for the electrification of transportation bridging, together industry, government, academia and consumer interests,” Clairman said. “Today’s Electric Vehicle Day will showcase the environmental and economic benefit of driving electric in Ontario.”

The release of a free iPhone App in partnership with Plug’n Drive, built from Bruce Power’s existing platform, that will have a number of interactive features for people who want to switch to electric vehicles. These include interactive maps of charging stations, and information on grants and vehicles available, along with a unique calculator where people can determine the economic and environmental benefits of going electric. The free App will be available for download at the App Store on Nov. 2.

Bruce Power and Plug’n Drive are supporting the installation of electric car charging stations partnering with communities around the Bruce site. Two dual wand charging stations have been installed at Bruce Power’s Visitors’ Centre, while additional stations have been installed in Port Elgin, Southampton, and Wroxeter. Further stations are planned for Kincardine, Sauble Beach and Owen Sound.

Bruce Power, Plug’n Drive, the University of Waterloo and the Asthma Society of Canada will commence a joint study to examine the economic and environmental opportunities associated with clean, electrified transportation in Ontario by leveraging the province’s clean electricity supply mix. This report will build on the expertise from all organizations and will be released in 2016.

As of 2012, only nine per cent of Ontario’s emissions come from the electricity sector, an advancement enabled by the phase out of coal-fired generation. The largest contributor to emissions in Ontario is the transportation sector, which accounts for 34 per cent of all emissions. The Ontario government has set a goal to reduce emissions from 1990 levels by 15 per cent by 2020 and 80 per cent by 2050. On an annual basis, the Bruce Power site avoids 31 million tonnes of CO2, which is the equivalent of taking six million cars off the road.

About Bruce Power

Bruce Power operates the world’s largest operating nuclear generating facility and is the source of roughly 30 per cent of Ontario’s electricity. The company’s site in Tiverton, ON, is home to eight CANDU reactors, each one capable of generating enough low-cost, reliable, safe and clean electricity to meet the annual needs of a city the size of Hamilton. Formed in 2001, Bruce Power is an all-Canadian partnership among Borealis Infrastructure Management (a division of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System), TransCanada, the Power Workers’ Union and the Society of Energy Professionals. A majority of Bruce Power’s employees are also owners in the business.